One Night
by filesfreak4life
Summary: "Maybe that's your problem..." Set after ninth season, Harm and Mac decide to try out a theory, and the results are more than they expected. H/M
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Here is yet another JAG fanfic from me, based on the idea that they decided to explore their "problem" as Sturgis put it. It is set a bit after the Admiral retires and Cresswell is appointed the new JAG. I'm still working on my other fanfic, but it was one of those situations where this idea came into my head, and until I got it down, I wasn't going to be able to finish the other one without thinking of this one! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this first installment of "One Night". Review if you would like!**

As I'm talking to my newest client, Harm steps into the room with a sheepish grin on his face, which was to be expected.

"Oh, hey, I didn't realize that you had a meeting."

I furrow my brow, "Did you not get my note?"

"No… I did… I just…" He just thought that I had lied, was the unspoken words that I saw in his eyes.

"When I finish up here, I'll find you and we can talk about that case we started last night, okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be in my office."

I nod and then turn back to my client as he leaves the room, almost seeming more scared than when he had come in just a few minutes ago.

When the Petty Officer left I was forced to think about the situation we put ourselves in. We have been on a roller coaster of sorts lately and I wasn't able to really put my finger on where we stood. I have known that I love him for years now. That love has taken many forms during those years, and I know that he feels the same way. It just isn't our time. Maybe it isn't ever supposed to be our time. That's where last night came in.

"_When was the last time you went on a date, Mac?" He asks, looking up from his files._

"_Mic. You?"_

"_Webb didn't count?"_

"_He never really took me out. We had a totally dysfunctional relationship. What about you?"_

"_Renee. Some dry spells we've been having, huh? Well, me more so than you, I guess."_

"_Harm… we have to be ready for this tomorrow, stop distracting me."_

"_Sorry." He says, focusing back on what he was working on before._

_It was a few minutes later after I had been staring at the same page without actually understanding a word that was in front of me that I had to know, "Why did you ask me that?"_

"_I was just wondering."_

"_No you weren't, give me a reason."_

"_Something Bud said to me the other day."_

"_What did he say?"_

_I made the mistake of taking a sip of water before the following came out of my partners lips, "He said that maybe we do need to just lock ourselves in a room together to get it all out of our systems."_

"_Bud did not say that."_

"_He did… however it was after Sturgis was complaining that the two of us fight like an old married couple and just need to get a room. I may have been complaining about the last fight the two of us got in over that stupid case about the Major and the bar fight."_

"_I could see that from Sturgis, but Bud?"_

"_He had a few beers in him."_

"_Huh…"_

_We're sitting there for awhile, neither one working on anything remotely productive._

"_You know, Sturgis said that to me once too… something about how maybe that was our problem."_

"_And?"_

"_And I told him he was crazy."_

"_You know me better than anyone Mac, and I'm pretty sure I know you better than anyone too."_

"_And?" I said raising an eyebrow and returning his earlier sentiment._

"_Have you ever thought about it?"_

_This is where I stop for a moment to think about the situation. Do I be honest and tell him that the thought has most certainly crossed my mind more than once, or do I lie to make things easier for this conversation._

"_I know I have… I mean…" he blurts out in a way that is almost comical._

_Well then, I see my decision has been made for me, "I have."_

"_And?" he says with a sparkle in his eye that tells me he is now just enjoying toying with me._

"_Are you propositioning me Harmon Rabb?"_

"_If I was, what would you say?"_

_He has steadily leaned closer to me as the conversation has gone on, and I know that there will be no turning back from this moment if we go there or don't. We can't take this conversation back now._

"_I'd say to put your money where your mouth is…"_

I shiver at the thought of how the rest of that evening went… a tangle of limbs and breathy declarations. We set up the rules beforehand. It would be one night and we would be honest about what we thought. We both knew that we weren't ready for the relationship that could be, so we settled to see if it would even be worth the try.

Worth it.

"Hey, Mac?" I hear, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"hmm?" I look up into the eyes of the man who was currently consuming my thoughts.

"I saw the Petty Officer leave a while ago, and you didn't come find me… are you sure you aren't trying to avoid me?" he asks with an air of shyness I don't think that I've ever seen from him.

"Harm, if I was trying to avoid you, I wouldn't be sitting in my office for you to find me."

"Oh." He says, shutting the door behind him and sitting down in front of my desk, "sooo…"

"I'm not avoiding you, I don't regret it, it was amazing, and that's it."

"That's it?"

"You and I agreed that it would be one night. We also agreed that we wouldn't make it weird."

"You really are okay with this?"

"One day, we're going to be on the same page. You and Mattie will be set the way you need to be, I'll be over my commitment issues, and maybe we'll remember last night and realize that it's worth a try. That was the reason for everything, wasn't it?"

"Sarah…"

I give him a full on smile before dropping the subject completely, "So, what do you think we should do about all of these extra cases the General has us working on?"

He smiles back and we get down to business.

The way the two of us were able to put it all aside has amazed me beyond no end these past few months. In fact I think that it made us better at working together and even made us better friends. When I say that, I also confess that I do still think of Harm naked from time to time… every night.

Today makes me love him and treasure him even more as he comes to nurse me back to health by knocking on my door.

"Hey, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling a lot better than I have been the past few days."

"Yeah, well, did you go to the Doctor yet?" he asks, following me into the living room while I plop down onto the couch.

"I told you that I know exactly what it is. I've been exhausted the past few weeks leading up to this and now I'm finally getting what was coming to me. To be honest, I'm glad, cause after thirty five it is getting harder and harder to keep fitting into those cute Marine green issued skirts. Maybe the flu will make me lose a few pounds."

"Mac." He says with a sarcastic tone, "You look just as beautiful as the day I met you…"

"Thank you… and thank you for bringing me some stuff."

"Yeah, well, you aren't going to be thanking me in a minute."

"Why?"

"I brought everything you asked me too, and I stopped at the drug store to get you a few more things I thought you needed… magazines, crossword books… and…uh…" he trails off, his eyes focused on the bag at his feet and well within my reach.

When he doesn't continue, I grab the bag and start shuffling through the contents. That's when I realize why he's so uncomfortable right now, and I don't know the thoughts that go through my head.

"Harm, this is a pretty crappy attempt at a joke for my putting on a few pounds."

"It was Harriet who mentioned it to me."

"Harriet? Harriet knows about everything with the doctor… she wouldn't have said – "

"I called her to ask her what magazines she thought you would like the most and I was updating her on your condition since she hadn't heard from you in a few days. Her exact words were 'If I didn't know the circumstances, I would say she was pregnant.' When I started thinking about it, I started looking up some stuff. You are textbook for morning sickness with the timing and everything. It also explains the exhaustion and the weight gain."

I'm thinking for a minute before he calls my name and wakes me out of my reverie. "I'm not pregnant."

"Because you have proof that you aren't, or because of how scared you are that you might be."

"I can't be. The doctor said that I had less than a five percent chance to conceive, and I would assume that was with trying. There was no trying here. There was one night almost three months ago."

"In which we didn't take any precautions… and if we're being honest, one night didn't mean one time, Sarah."

"I'm not pregnant." I say, getting up and walking to my bedroom to be alone for a minute.

When he finds me, I'm a weepy, teary mess on the bed. It was the same bed that possibly conceived the child that could be taking up residence inside me right now, which is why there is no surprise when he curls up beside me on said bed.

"You and I have always beaten the odds… I'm glad that we could have beaten them in this case too."

I turn to look at him then, a mixture of emotions showing on my face. He was happy about this? Not that I wasn't, but I don't think that I was expecting this reaction out of him. He had said the words before, but they were just words. Harm and I usually don't follow through with our words.

"You're okay with this?"

"Mac, you've wanted this for a while now. As much as you didn't want to admit it, when it was taken away from you, you realized how badly you wanted it. I want it too, with you. I told you that months ago, when the Admiral retired. Are you not okay with this?"

"No, I am… I just… I don't even know how I feel about it. I don't even know if I'm pregnant or not."

"There's only one way to find out."

"I don't think I'm ready yet."

"Ready to take the test, or ready to be a mom?"

That phrase took the breath right out of me and I sit up in bed remembering the last time a title as important passed his lips and it took me a bit by surprise.

"What?"

"I'm remembering when I was about to marry Mic and you referred to him as my husband. It sounded so foreign to me."

"Okay?" He says, clearly not understanding my thought process.

"You put a title on it and it all became real in that moment. And, well…we know how well that went."

"This is different." He says with a confident voice.

"How?"

"Because this time, I know that I love you and I know that you love me, so I know that if there is a baby… he or she is going to be just fine with us as parents. You're ready for this and I'm ready for this."

"Individually we might be, but us? We're not ready for all that, Harm."

"I know. You said you needed space with everything."

"And then we slept together… some space." I say with a quirk of my eyebrow and he laughs in my direction just a bit, "I still don't know what I want."

"Well, I think that taking the test is going to make you have to switch around some priorities. You might want to figure that out first."

"If I'm pregnant, that means I'm almost 8 weeks today. What if something's wrong because I haven't been doing everything I'm supposed to?"

"What if nothing is wrong and the baby is just a small miracle?" he says with a smile that melts my heart.

"Test?" I say, putting my hand out.

He runs out of the bedroom and brings back the item in question.

"Mac, Sarah… I want you to know that if it isn't positive, this doesn't have to be the end of this. I know you said you needed your space, but I don't know… I'm still here for you when you're ready. And if you aren't, I'm sorry that I brought it up and hurt you again."

The look in his eyes, as he tries to hide his face while confessing that last part, is why I think that all of this is going to be okay. The fact that he is so concerned about my feelings on everything surrounding this makes me reach up and take his lips with mine for the second time this year.

"What was that for?" he says after awhile when we finally pull apart.

"I know that we have a lot to talk about if this is positive, but know that I'm so glad it's you."

I stand up and make my way to the bathroom stopping when I hear him say, "It was only ever going to be you, Mac… only you."

I stay in the bathroom for some reason. I think it is to process on my own before all of this unfolds. If I'm pregnant that means that Harm and I are going to be parents. Harm and I are going to be parents? The idea brought up years ago on the steps of JAG was something that was always in the back of my mind. Dr. McCool called it my backup plan. She was right in saying that it was actually my plan all along, even though I'm having a hard time admitting it to myself. If I'm not pregnant, do I want to try? Do I have the right to bring a baby into this world with the knowledge that Harm and I don't know what we're doing?

That's when I realize that is exactly what happens if this test is positive. I also realize that I can look now... down at the white stick I have gripped so tightly in my right hand that I feel like I can't even flip it over to look.

I do.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Next installment! I'm hoping that you are all enjoying it! Review if you would like!**

In his defense, the tears could be a result of either outcome, so he doesn't show any kind of reaction initially. When I push the test into his hands, I can't even describe what I see fall over his face. I imagine it has some semblance to the look I had, but seeing it changes everything.

A small grin forms on his face and I can see the tears well up a bit in the corners of his eyes. He places the test next to where he was sitting on the bed and stands up in front of me, not trying to hide what I see reflected in his eyes.

"I love you, Mac." He says after looking into my eyes for a beat or two, and then pulls me to him for another of the sweetest, most loving kisses I've ever experienced.

"Are we happy?"

"I know that I'm happy, are you?"

"I've just been given something I thought was going to be taken away from me forever… I don't think I could be happier." I say honestly.

"What's next?" he asks, pulling me to sit down on the bed next to him.

"I think that the next step is calling my doctor. I know that the test says positive, but with my endometriosis and the fact that I haven't been seen yet worries me. I just want to make sure that everything is okay."

"Why don't you see if you can get in tomorrow?"

"I was thinking about taking the day anyway, so I could probably get in tomorrow afternoon if I call first thing in the morning."

"Oh." He says, causing me to turn to him and see a look of rejection cross his face.

"What is it?"

"I was just hoping to come with you. I know that for most of the appointment, I probably couldn't be in there, but I want to be there for you. I'm not letting you go through any of this alone, Mac."

"Then I'll see if I can make it for the early evening."

"Okay, that sounds good. Now let's get you fed and back to sleep." He says, standing up and making his way to the kitchen with me not too far behind.

I admit that I'm a bit sad when he leaves, but I'm glad for the time to think about everything. I never thought that I would put myself in this position, especially after my wild days are behind me. A Marine officer and pregnant out of wedlock… with a fellow officer under the same command. I know that I've gotten to the point where I don't care about what people think of me, but this might be one of those times that I do. And are we going to tell people that it's Harm's baby too? What is that going to do for him?

That was how I fell asleep last night, thinking about everything under the sun regarding this baby and Harm and I. Waking up wasn't such a pleasant experience either. Harm made it a little easier.

I felt his presence before I felt the hand start stroking my back as I lost last night's dinner. When I am able to stand up and turn around, he hands me a wet rag and starts to fill up the water glass I leave by the sink.

"You left." I say simply with a questioning glance.

"I did, but then I remember how bad you said you felt in the mornings. I figured that the baby didn't like mornings, so I would make sure that you would survive them."

"You didn't have to do this."

"I know, but I did anyways… are you upset that I did?"

"No, just surprised."

"When I got home last night I was looking up all this stuff about morning sickness and I got some stuff on the way over here for you to try."

"Have you slept at all?" I say with a grin.

"I relaxed on the couch for a while before I heard you get up."

"Harm… sleep." I say pulling him into the bedroom and pulling back the covers on the other side of the bed.

He gets in and I make my way back to the bathroom to brush my teeth.

"Mac?"

"I'm brushing my teeth. I'll be right back."

When I get back to the bed he is curled up on his side facing my side of the bed. As soon as I get in, his arms scoop around me and he puts a hand to my stomach.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, and thank you for being here."

"I love you, Sarah… you do know that, right?"

"I do, and you know that I love you too?"

"Every now and then I think it is nice to hear the words, don't you?"

"I don't know… I've never heard them from someone I wanted to hear it from."

"Good to know."

I wasn't ready to go back to work yet. I think that today was more of a mental health day rather than a sick day per se. The doctor's appointment had me scared more than I would like to be. My main concern was the fact that I didn't have any clue that I was pregnant for the last two months. What damage could I have done? Harm always points out that I don't eat the best, and I've been running around on cases just about anywhere they would send me. I do exercise on a regular basis, but am I doing too much?

All of these questions are running through my head when Harm comes to get me. He thought that I should get picked up in case they ran blood work or did anything else that might make me unsteady on my feet. I laughed at that, but was happy on the inside that he was so concerned.

"Colonel MacKenzie, are you ready to come back?"

"I am, but can my…" crap, what do I call Harm? My baby's father? My complicated lover? "…friend come back with me?"

"He sure can. I'll let the doctor know you're here."

I can tell that this is probably the most awkward place that Harm has ever been in, given the fact that he is a little white in a room full of female reproductive pictures, fetus diagrams, and a table with stirrups.

"It's not my favorite place to come either, but you'll be a pro by the time this kid is born." I say, smiling at him and patting him on the back.

He's about to respond when the knock on the door signals the doctor's arrival. She's dragging a machine behind her and has a concerned look on her face as she walks in.

"Colonel, I was surprised to be seeing you so soon until I read the reason for the appointment… which then made me even more surprised."

"You and me both."

"What leads you to believe that you're pregnant?"

"Other than the tiredness, the morning sickness, and the weight gain… the positive pregnancy test was a good indicator."

"So you did already take a home test?" She says after her eyebrows raised at my list of "symptoms."

"I wouldn't be here if I hadn't."

"Okay, then I'm going to have to give you an exam and I want to look in there and see what is going on."

"You sound like you aren't convinced." Harm says from off to the side and I turn to him with a look.

"Colonel, with help, you still had a very small chance of conceiving, so the fact that you might have actually done that without help is hard to fathom."

"So you think this is what? You think it's a hysterical pregnancy?"

"I will admit that there are plenty of cases where women that have been told they couldn't conceive come back thinking that they are pregnant."

"Doctor, I wasn't trying to get pregnant. In fact I wasn't doing anything that would result in getting pregnant until one night three months ago, after which I haven't been doing anything. I wasn't even the one who thought I was pregnant, it was him." I say gesturing to Harm and letting myself get more upset than I intended to.

"Which is why I want to do an exam and do an ultrasound. I want to make sure that everything is as it should be." She says, putting a reassuring hand on my knee before continuing, "why don't you get a gown on and you and I can do that first part while he steps outside. Then he can come back in and we'll take a look around."

I nod and Harm stands up to leave after giving me a kiss on the cheek. Now I'm just upset about everything. We had talked a lot of this through last night and I had the time to wrap my head around it, and she's saying that it might not actually be true?

When she comes back in for the exam I think I feel more sick than I did this morning, which has me hoping that I don't throw up all over the table.

"You feeling okay, Colonel?" she asks, and I can feel that my face has gone a bit green.

"Just a little queasy. I thought that I was through with that this morning, but I think the nerves are getting to me."

"Understandable." She says, making a quick work out of the internal exam and then asking me about Harm before inviting him in.

"He's the baby's father, and he's my best friend."

"Not more than that?" she looks up with a smirk.

"Not right now."

"Well, let's bring him in so we can do the ultrasound."

When he walks in, he stands right by my side and takes my hand in his. A gesture that the doctor smirks at and has me thinking about what Harm and I are to each other.

She smears the gel on my stomach and I'm trying to make sense of what I see on the screen before she can explain anything.

"You won't be able to see much of anything, but let's see if I can find what we are looking for." She says, pausing to move the wand around a bit before she breaks the silence, "I'll be damned… do you see that?" she asks and points to the monitor in front of us.

We both nod and she moves the wand around again, "That is your son or daughter. And that little jumpy thing in the middle is the heartbeat."

"I'm really pregnant?" I ask, shocked more than I thought I would be, considering I already thought that I was.

"Now it's real, you two. Are you ready?"

I look up at Harm and he seems to be absolutely beaming, which I smile at. Then he brushes his thumb along my cheek and wipes a few stray tears that I didn't know I had shed before looking back up at the screen.

"I'm going to print a couple of these off for you, and then write you a prescription for some vitamins and send you on your way with some other information."

She does just that, and it seems like all the sudden, Harm and I really are parents.

"How are you feeling about all this?"

"It's actually happening." I say in response to his question once we get in the car.

"Thank you, Sarah."

"For?"

"For this baby, for your friendship, for just… you."

"This baby is already turning you into a big sap."

"It is not."

"It is, but I love it anyway."

"So what do you want for dinner?"

"We're going for dinner?"

"I thought that you would be hungry, so I just assumed that you would want to go."

"And after that?" I ask, thinking about last night and him coming back to the apartment after he had left.

"If you don't want me to come back, I won't. I just don't want you to feel like you're alone in any part of this, Mac. You deserve better than that."

"Stay tonight, and we'll talk about what that means." I say, wondering what we were going to hash out this evening.

As it turns out, this evening consisted of eating dinner and me falling asleep before Harm could even bring me my bowl of ice cream for dessert. When I woke up, I was in the bed and there was no Harm beside me. Instead he was on the couch, fast asleep, with the ultrasound picture out on the coffee table next to him.

"You're awake. Are you okay?" he sits up, noticing my presence.

"I'm fine, I just woke up like normal to an empty bed and when I came out here, I found you sleeping." I say, sitting down at his feet and leaning to pick up the picture from the table.

"It's pretty amazing. I just can't stop staring at it."

"You think it's amazing… try knowing that it's growing inside you!" I say with a laugh and a glance down at my stomach.

"Do you want something for breakfast?"

"Maybe just some toast? I'm feeling a little nauseous, but not too bad. I want to get something in my stomach before it does turn bad."

"Maybe it won't." he says standing up to make me my toast, and putting a little cinnamon sugar on it because he knows how much I love that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Yet another chapter for all of you! I'm thinking that this is probably only going to be about 5 chapters total if I can do it in that amount. Hoping that you are enjoying. Post a review if you would like!**

He was right about it not being that bad though. My nausea went away after eating, so I took that as a good sign. It was going to be a good day. It was a good day, actually… until around lunch time.

He proposed.

We were fighting about how and when to tell the General about our situation as we were eating our lunch, and he just throws it out there like it's nothing.

"You know what would make all of this so much easier?"

"Hmm?" I ask with my mouth wrapped around my fork.

"Let's get married." He says so simply that I want to hit him.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Why not?"

"Because neither of us is ready for that."

"Mac, we're having a baby together. I think that we're as ready as we're going to be."

"Tell me this… If I wasn't pregnant, would we be having this discussion right now?"

"Right now, no. But in the future, yes."

That was all I needed and before I could think about the scene that it would make, I got out of my chair and went for the door. He tried to stop me, but in clear view of everyone in the bullpen, I pushed him back, slammed the door, and ran for the ladies' room.

Of course the person with the clearest view had been the General.

Once I was able to compose myself, I returned to my office, and was hoping to sit there away from the prying eyes of those in the bullpen. That was short lived as Coates caught me before I even made it, telling me that the General was waiting for me in his office with the Commander.

Walking in and standing at attention in front of a man who I already had a past with was almost enough to crumble my cool Marine exterior. I had already told Harm my concerns over General Cresswell, and all I could think of was what happened in Okinawa.

"At ease, Colonel. Why don't you sit down and help the Commander explain to me why you came storming out of your office and struck a fellow officer?"

"I wouldn't say that she struck me, sir. She pushed me out of the way more than struck me."

"Commander, do you think that even that is appropriate behavior for an officer?"

"Under the circumstances, sir, I think she had every right to push me."

"So you are taking the blame for this?"

"I am."

"No… I overreacted to something that the Commander said. It was my fault, sir." I say, knowing full well that Harm would attempt to fall on his sword for me every time.

"What was it that he said?"

Silence.

"Colonel?"

"I would rather not say, sir."

"Are you going to make me order you?" he says, standing up and leaning in the commanding way that Chegwidden used to do when the two of us caused him grief.

I look to Harm then, wondering how exactly we were going to get out of this situation, and realizing that sooner or later the General was going to figure it all out. There was a timetable that neither of us could really avoid.

"He proposed."

He stops dead in his pacing tracks to look between the two of us, knowing exactly what I meant by the statement.

"Proposed what exactly?"

"Marriage." I say matter of factly.

"I see." He replies, sitting back down in his chair and grabbing the bridge of his nose to take a minute to digest the information. "And when were the two of you going to inform this office that you were in a romantic relationship? I was told by Admiral Chegwidden that nothing had happened yet in that regard."

"We aren't in… wait… yet?" I say, finally realizing what he had said.

"In our few hours together, talking about the inner workings of the JAG office, the two of you took up the majority of the time. He was fond of the two of you, but he knew that eventually you would have to give in to what he called the 'itch'."

"We aren't in a relationship, we haven't been in a relationship."

"So the Commander just decided on a whim to propose marriage and you took him so seriously that you caused a scene?"

I look back at Harm again and he is giving me a look that I can only describe as telling me to get it over with. Either way we were going to be reprimanded and either way, one of us was probably going to be transferred.

"It wasn't on a whim, sir. I found out a few days ago that I'm pregnant."

"And if you and the Commander aren't in a relationship, then why does it concern him?" he says, gesturing to Harm, who still remained quiet.

"Let me clarify. We… The Commander and I are expecting a child… together."

Looking between us in the same way he did when I confessed that Harm had proposed, Cresswell sat for a minute. It almost got to be too long when he finally broke the silence and stood up, pacing around the room as he spoke.

"So it is my understanding that the two of you had… something… apparently not too long ago and found out that you are pregnant. The fact that the two of you are telling me that you aren't in a relationship leads me to believe that what the Admiral said about your denying your feelings is finally coming to a head. The Commander, even though well intentioned, stupidly proposed, to which you thought was just because of the pregnancy. I would also assume that you didn't let him get a word in edge wise after he asked you to marry him. You stormed out and now can't make heads or tails of the entire situation. Colonel, I will chalk your behavior up to hormones, because I had a pregnant wife once who I swear was going to kill me in my sleep. Commander, I will chalk your stupidity up to the fact that you can't figure out a way to tell her how you really feel and she won't tell you either and you just found out that you're going to be a father. Up until now, I have seen great work come out of your partnership, and there is nothing that says I need to separate the two of you. So, at this time, call it a warning and go back to what you were doing. Colonel, I expect paperwork on my desk about when you would like to take your maternity leave as well. Dismissed." He says, smiling toward the end and taking a seat behind his desk, and leaving the two of us sitting confused in the chairs.

When we stood up to leave, our attention was called back when we got to the door.

"Commander, Colonel… congratulations."

"Thank you, sir." We both say in unison.

The rest of that day was not the best, which made me feel ten times worse by the end. All I wanted to do was curl up on the couch with ice cream and the television and not see Harm until the next day… maybe not even then.

Of course, he couldn't wait.

When I got to the door and opened it, I was fully expecting to yell at him for making a scene earlier today and for going so silent after his attempt to absolve me failed. I was fully prepared to yell at the man, but it wasn't Harm that came to my door that evening.

"Admiral?" I say, confused.

"Can I come in for a minute, Mac?"

"ummm, yes, sure. Come in and sit down."

As he sat, he looked around the small apartment with a smile. "It's a nice place you have here, Mac."

"Thank you, sir."

"Retired."

"But somehow I don't think that you are completely out of touch with everyone." I say, making my suspicions known.

"I know that you were probably expecting the Commander on the other side of that door, but you don't have to worry about that. I already spoke to him and told him what an idiot he was. I also told him to give you your space at least for the evening."

"So he told you everything."

"No, he didn't get the chance to tell me everything because the General beat him to it. I was only glad that I was in town to come over and check on the two of you."

"I appreciate it, sir."

"So, I would assume that I owe you congratulations?"

"You would think."

"And here we go… I assume this wasn't planned. Are you upset?"

"It wasn't planned, but I'm not upset about the baby. I'm upset about the situation."

"You're having a baby with the man you have loved for what… 9 years now, is it?"

"You say that like it's been there all along."

"It has. As much as the two of you skated around each other for all these years, I had enough puppy dog longing looks out of the two of you to make me want to retire earlier than I did."

"You didn't go earlier though?"

"I was waiting to see this thing pan out, but you never figured it out." He says with a smile that makes me fully believe that he really had been rooting for us all along. "Mac, what do you want with all of this? You say that the situation upsets you, but why let it? Why not let it all go and realize what I've known for years?"

"I told him that once. The whole reason he and I weren't together was that he couldn't let go."

"So maybe he's ready now."

"Admiral, he proposed to me in my office by just telling me that marrying each other would make it easier to tell everyone."

"I didn't say that he went about everything the right way. I said that he was ready."

The Admiral was right, and after a few more topics of conversation he left, telling me that I needed to think about everything. I didn't have to just turn around and marry Harm, but I did need to think about what this baby was going to do to Harm's and my relationship, whatever it might be.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I love when I'm writing and all the sudden it turns in a direction that I wasn't planning. It did, and while I still get the ending that I want (probably in the next chapter)… I'm happy with how things went in this one! I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Review if you would like!**

We worked ourselves into a sort of routine in the months following, with Harm coming over when I needed him, but not being there to wait on me hand and foot like he would like. I still called on him quite a bit, but didn't allow myself to depend on him completely. This morning, however was a time that I needed him… now.

"I need you to come over… like now." I say into the phone and he asks me what's wrong, "Nothing is wrong per se, but I just need you to come over."

It takes him about 10 minutes, if that, to get to my apartment and through my door.

"Mac?" he calls out, running through the apartment to find me sitting on the bed with a pile of clothing on either side of me. "Are you okay?"

"Am I okay… well that depends. You and I are supposed to be at Bud and Harriet's for a picnic with some of our friends in an hour, and I have nothing to wear."

"What do you mean? You've been able –" He stops when I stand up, showing him the new baby bump displayed in all its glory. "Where… did that come from?"

"I don't know! I woke up and it was just… there! Harm, I'm not ready yet. I'm not ready for everyone to find out. Today is not the day I want everyone to find out."

"What about a dress? You've got some springy dresses that you can wear, don't you?"

"I hadn't thought about a dress! You're a genius!" I say, running up to him, kissing him on the lips, and running back to my closet.

"Hey, I'm going to go in the kitchen and work on the pasta salad, I was getting ready to make it when you called."

"Kay." I yell from the tornado that is my closet now.

I settled on my white sundress with red flowers, as it really was the only thing that fit me and made at least an attempt at hiding the bump that was my stomach.

"Be honest…" I say coming into the kitchen, "Can you tell?"

He turns around and I don't know what came over him in that instant. Well, I know what came over him, but I don't know why… his eyes darkened as he looked me up and down before finally meeting my eyes and shaking himself out of it.

"Um… no, I think you're good." He replies quickly.

"Harm, you barely looked." I say with a quirk of my brow that makes him squint his eyes at me.

"I think you look gorgeous and that's all that anyone else is going to think. Actually, you look amazing Mac."

I blush at the comment, feeling good that he seemed genuine, even though I felt anything but beautiful at the moment.

"You think we could stop and pick me up some new skirts on the way? I'm not going to be able to wear this sundress to work on Monday."

"We most certainly can. And when we get back tonight, we're going to talk about how we are going to tell people. Baby wants everyone to know that he or she is in there, so you don't have much longer to hide this, Mac."

I nod, and make my way back to the bathroom to finish making myself look presentable.

Two new skirts and a jacket later, we show up at Bud and Harriet's with a pasta salad and some carefully purchased chocolate chip cookies.

"Hey you guys! We're glad you're here!"

"We aren't the first ones, are we?"

"You and Sturgis are the only ones so far. I think everyone else is on the way. I'm still trying to get the twins ready. Mac, do you want to help me?"

"Of course!" I say, handing my cookies off to Harm who gives me a small wink before heading into the house in search of the boys.

One found him quite quickly apparently, because by the time I come down with the Roberts' little girl, I'm met with the sight of our not so little Godson in the arms of one Harmon Rabb, Jr.

"Hey Marine, wanna trade?" he says, tickling the little boy in his arms.

"Aunt Mac!" AJ screams, climbing down from Harm and running toward me before realizing that I was holding his little sister.

"Hey AJ, was Harm torturing you again?"

"Yes!" he says, turning toward Harm with the same slit eyes I gave him when I made the comment.

"Well, maybe I'll teach you some Marine tricks to get even later."

"Ooo- Rah" He says running of into the backyard again.

"Making a Marine out of him, huh Jarhead?"

"Wouldn't have it any other way, squid!"

"Let me see this little one before everyone gets here and steals her from her Uncle Harm."

"Commander, you look good with a baby." Harriet says, coming into the kitchen and carrying her baby boy.

"Thanks Harriet." He says, and I hope what was an unnoticed look passes between the two of us.

"Mac, Harm! You're here… and Harm has a baby… wow… buddy that isn't a sight I thought I would ever see." Sturgis says, walking in from the backyard with a beer in his hand and Jimmy attached to his leg.

"I could say the same to you." He says, gesturing to the toddler.

"Yeah, well… Mac, you're looking beautiful today. Don't you think, Commander?"

"She's always beautiful Sturgis…"

"I'm out of your league, you know." I say to him in that playful way that we've been starting to get back these past few months.

Then, I don't know what happens, but his eyes glint with a smile before he looks down, and whispers "and clearly taken." And then walks out the door and to the back yard again.

I know my eyes go wide, and one look to Harm tells me that he heard the exchange.

"Sturgis, wait." I say, almost chasing after him with Harm close behind me still holding the baby.

"Practicing?" he says when we come to stop in front of him, away from the earshot of Bud and Harriet.

"What are you talking about?"

"I figured it out a couple weeks ago, but your reaction to my comment was enough to give me solid proof. You're pregnant?"

Then the secret we thought was contained to just Sturgis Turner spread like wildfire through the Roberts' home, which now had Petty Officer Coates and a few of the other JAG officers standing around.

"MOM! Aunt Mac is going to have a baby!" AJ says running around the backyard and onto the porch where Harriet was standing with an open mouth and a baby still on her hip.

"Well, so much for talking about how we were going to tell people."

"Leave it to a 5 year old to break the news."

"We… so it is the two of you? When did this happen?"

"It didn't really… we just…" I start to say when Harm interrupts.

"You remember that one night at MacLaren's when you said we needed to just get a room cause we were fighting like an old married couple?"

"Yeah."

"Well, we stopped fighting for the most part, didn't we?"

By now, Harriet has made her way over to the three of us, still wide eyed at the news, "Are you really pregnant?"

I nod and she grabs me into a hug before starting to cry, "I thought that you couldn't have a baby!"

"That's what I thought too, but apparently God had other plans for us."

"Us… you mean?" she asks by looking between the two of us.

"The two of you finally get together and I wasn't there to see it."

"Harriet, we're not together, we're having a baby."

"Oh this is going to go over well." We hear Sturgis say under his breath.

"Wait, how are those two things not totally related?"

"They just aren't. Now if you don't mind, I smell hamburgers and baby needs food…" I say quickly with a pat to my stomach, choosing to not make a big deal out of this coming out.

"Ma'am? Congratulations?" Coates says, looking at me with plenty of questions in her eyes.

"Thank you, Petty Officer…" I reply, all the sudden feeling quite nauseous and dizzy… "I think I need to sit down."

"Commander Rabb!" I hear Coates yell as I make my way over to a chair on the patio.

Harm is there in an instant, ordering someone to get me some water and pulling Bud away from the grill to help me inside.

"Sarah, are you okay? Should we take you to the hospital?"

"What? No." I reply, knowing that it was just a combination of the heat and nerves and baby that caused my moment of dizziness. "Harm, I'm fine." I say swatting him away without success.

All at once, Sturgis is there with a bottle of water and Harriet is right behind him with an ice pack and a towel.

"Here, drink some of this and put this behind your neck. If you don't start feeling better in like five minutes we're going to the emergency room." He says, locking his eyes with mine.

For a few minutes I forget where we are, as he takes up residence next to me on the couch, pulling me to lean onto his shoulder.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better."

"Are you lying?"

"No, I really do feel better, but I think I'm going to stay inside for a little while longer. Will you fix me a plate?"

He does, and the rest of the day passes without incident. It was a lovely day of friends and food and fun, with the occasional comment about my new bump that apparently was not only suspected by Sturgis, but by Petty Officer Coates as well.

When we get in the car to leave, Harm is uncharacteristically quieter than usual, but I let it slide… at least for a while. By the time we pull up to my apartment, I don't think that I can deal with the silence any more.

"Harm, what's up?"

"Hmm?" he says, turning toward me with a look I cannot place.

"Hey…. What's wrong?" I ask again, this time placing my hand on his where it rests on his knee.

"I love you Sarah. Every part of me loves you and I have a crappy way of showing it and even saying it, because I swear I've been in love with you for years. Before Mic, before Webb, before this baby. When I heard Coates yell this afternoon, I was running on instinct before I knew it was you. I handed Nikki off to Sturgis and saw you stumble your way into that chair and my heart just went into overdrive. I know that you and I aren't really anything officially to each other, but God, Mac… you're everything to me. You're more than you realize or want to admit, and when I thought that something was wrong, and I thought something could be wrong with the baby, I've never been so scared in my life… or so happy to serve you a plate stuffed with all that meat…" he says the last part with a laugh.

"We're just us…" I say finally.

"But what does that mean?"

"It means that no matter what, we're there for each other. We're the first person the other calls… the first person we want to see in the morning and the last person we want to see at night. We're the first person we actually want to let go for, but are too damned stubborn or afraid to do so. We're just us… there is no title for the person you know that you're meant to spend the rest of your life with in any way you can have them."

"What would you say to me getting all my stuff and coming to move in here with you… at least until the baby comes. I want to make sure that you're okay."

"And what would you say to me saying that you're welcome to stay after the baby comes too."

"Mac, are you propositioning me?" he says, in a teasing tone that brings us both back to the one night that brought us into this mess in the first place.

"And what if I was?"

"I'd say put your money where your mouth is…"


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Okay, here is the last chapter of this little story. I hope you all enjoy it… and on another note. I've been noticing a lack in Harm/Mac JAG fiction here lately, so when you're done reading, I would like you to all please write a story. I don't know what it should be about, but you should write one. I've got one half started and I'm still working on updating my other fic too, so I promise that I'm doing my part. :) Hope you enjoy and review if you would like!**

The way we just fit into things still amazes me, but doesn't really surprise me if that makes any kind of sense. We agreed that we did want to raise the baby together as both parents, but we didn't necessarily put a label on anything. Everything was completely platonic between the two of us for the following months, except for the fact that we were in a more intimate relationship with each other emotionally than either of us ever had been.

Sex hadn't even re-entered the picture, because we knew that if it did, we would lose our focus on the greater goal. No label, but a definite love for each other was seen by all. It was like we radiated coupleness without being a couple.

"Harm, it's a girl, we aren't getting a navy blue carseat and stroller."

"Oh, but getting that pale version of Marine green is totally okay?" he combats back at me.

"The fact that it is green has nothing to do with why I like it, I just think it's pretty!" I say, letting my voice get louder.

"You are so determined to make this kid into a jarhead, aren't you?"

"Just as much as you are determined to make her a squid."

"Well, as of right now, the kid has spent all her life under water, so I feel she's a perfect candidate for Anapolis." He says with that smug grin while walking up and then placing a hand gently on my stomach.

Leaning down, like he always does, he starts telling our daughter how much nicer the naval uniforms are, even though mommy looks so hot in the Marine greens.

"Harm!" I say, smacking the top of his head and placing my hand over his on my stomach.

"Just kidding… you can be whatever you want, little one… we'll love you no matter what… even if I have to push you around in that green stroller."

We he comes back up, he kisses my forehead before putting his hands on his hips and taking a step back to look at the display.

"What about the beige print over there?"

"That could work, I like it."

"And if we have another—"

My eyes shoot to his for a second before we are interrupted by an older woman coming up to us in the aisle. Saved by the bell indeed.

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear the two of you… how long have you been married?" She says with the largest smile in the universe split between the two of us.

"Nine years." Harm says, it falling out of his mouth like he's said it every day.

"And this is your first?" She asks and I nod before she continues, "My husband and I had five altogether, and now I'm shopping for grandchildren. I'm going to tell you what I told my own though… Babies thrive when they know how in love their parents are. They just know… and from what I can tell, this baby is going to be a very lucky little one. The love in your eyes can be seen a mile away." She says with a grin before walking away in search of something for her grandchild.

I turn to Harm then, with a slight bit of tears in my eyes, "Nine years, huh?"

"What can I say? You had me at an outstretched hand and a confident 'Mac.'" He says, almost brushing it off as something that he again says every day before grabbing the box that had the beige patterned stroller and seat.

I laugh at this before remembering what he said before the woman came over, "Harm?"

"Hmm?" he says distracted by trying to figure out a way to get the box into the cart we had.

"What were you going to say?"

"When?"

"Before, when that woman came up to us… you said that the carseat would be perfect if we have another…." I say trailing off just like the conversation did.

His instant blush was a surprise to me and he quickly tried to recover by telling me that he was talking about another car. Something about how beige would go with different interiors.

"Oh."

"Why, what did you think I was going to say?"

"I thought you were talking about us having another kid."

"Oh…well…I…"

"Off the hook, sailor. I'm not fishing…." I say, not wanting him to think that I was trying to get him to commit to something that neither of us was really ready to talk about.

I'm lost in thinking about how perfect he and I would be together based on how we are in the day to day now. Add a couple of kids, a big dog, and a nice suburban house and I feel like we would be more than okay. He snaps me out of my fantasies all too quickly though.

"Is that all you wanted to get today, or do you want to look around some more?"

"No, I'm getting tired. I need to take a nap when we get home."

"Did we overdo it?"

I shake my head and he gives me a glare before asking me if I was sure.

"I'm fine. I'm eight months pregnant… so I'm tired."

If I thought I was tired then, I didn't know what could have possibly prepared me for the following days.

"Harm?" I say, sitting up in bed as much as I could and tapping him on the shoulder.

"Hmm?" He says, coming slowly awake and turning toward me.

"I think I'm having contractions…" I say calmly, knowing that the second he realizes what I just said, he's going to freak out.

"You what?" he says still in that cute sleepy voice before the realization hit, "Wait, you're having WHAT?" he then screams, shooting up in bed.

"I think I'm having contractions. It's –" I'm cut off by the stabbing pain in my back and shooting around my stomach.

He reaches for my hand as I ride out the wave and he also places one hand on my stomach to see what it was doing as well.

"It's just what the doctor said, your stomach is getting all tight. How long has it been since your last one?"

"About nine minutes or so… closer together than a while ago."

"Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I just did…" I say with a smile that I know annoys him.

"All right, let's get you to the hospital."

"Harm, you're forgetting the fact that I'm only 34 weeks along… this isn't supposed to happen for a while."

"The doctor said that the endometriosis could make you go earlier, Sarah. That's why we got your bag ready and the nursery ready. Now the baby's ready, and it's going to be fine."

The calm was surprising on his part, but much needed on my part, and we made it to the hospital without a hitch. It must have been the fighter pilot in him, because I could see the slight tremors of nerves every now and then in him as he helped me get ready and as he held me through a few of the contractions that followed. I couldn't have done this without him… I already know that.

Baby wasn't ready though… she wasn't anywhere near ready when they wheeled me into the delivery room. Nearly twenty-four hours later, she still wasn't here and I didn't know how much longer I could take it.

"Colonel, we've gotten to the point now where we are going to really speed this along by giving you a drug to thin out your cervix and speed up the labor. The only downside of this is that your epidural is wearing off and if you want to do this now, I can't give you another one."

"What's better for the baby?"

"The baby is starting to get restless in there and we are seeing a slight drop in her heart rate. It isn't anything to be concerned about yet, but if it continues to drop, we would have to do a C-Section."

"No, give me the other drug… it'll be fine."

"Mac." Harm says with his voice laced in concern.

"It's better for the baby… besides, I'm a Marine." I deliver the last line in a monotone that has him smirking.

"You are a Marine who has essentially been in labor for the last twenty-four hours."

After exchanging a few more unspoken words, I turn to the doctor one last time.

"I'd like to do what's best for the baby."

"Okay, then I suggest that you try best to shut your eyes while the epidural is still in your system a bit, because once this drug enters your system it could be anywhere from a few hours to a half hour for this baby to want out of there."

My eyes widen and I can feel Harm squeeze my hand in reassurance before the doctor walks out of the room in search of a nurse to get whatever it is into my IV.

"I'm here. You don't have to worry about anything, cause I'm right here."

"Are we ready for this?"

"Mac, I think that you and I were ready for this the day we promised each other that we would have a baby together on the steps of JAG headquarters."

"We were young…"

"We knew what we were getting ourselves into."

"Did we?"

"I did."

I smile, again forces to think about how he has shown me and told me these past months about all the ways he has loved me through the years. The way he would describe certain cases to me again and add in something about how beautiful I looked that day in court or how lucky our baby was to have my wits. This was another one of those moments.

It was an hour later that the contractions got to the point of me needing to push, which was something even this Marine was having a hard time doing after a day of labor.

"Come on Mac, you can do this."

"I'm so tired."

"Colonel, you need to push on this next contraction, come on, get ready."

"I can't."

"Mac… Sarah… you can do this… come on, I love you, and this baby is going to be so perfect and so lucky to have you as a mom. You can do this." Harm says, never letting his glance stray from mine.

"I'm tired, Harm."

"I know you are, but you can do this…come on Mac. I'm here. I told you I would never leave, Sarah, and I'm here right now. Come on, so we can meet our little girl. We have to see if she's got your looks and my brains or my looks and your brains, remember."

"You have too good a memory at times, Harmon Rabb."

"Only when it's concerning you, Sarah MacKenzie. You can do this."

When the contraction hit, I could feel the pain rip through me as I held on to Harm's hand and screamed louder than a drill sergeant through basic.

Then I heard the sweetest of sounds. It was the tiny little wail of our daughter, taking her first breaths.

"You did a great job." The doctor says, holding her up and handing her off to a nurse to be cleaned and tested before she came back to me.

"Dad, do you want to come over here so you can hand off your daughter to mom?" the nurse asks and Harm all but runs over to the plastic bassinet to retrieve the wrapped up little bundle.

"Oh my God, she's beautiful." He says, walking over to me and looking at me with tears in his eyes that I'd only seen a few times in the time I'd known him.

When he puts her in my arms, my heart literally stops at the sight before me. Pink, soft baby skin and little fingers poking out of her blanket. She was ours. It was as if the entire universe came together in one instant to make this tiny little life happen and I couldn't be more grateful. My tears flowed freely when I looked up from the baby to Harm, who leaned down and kissed me with all the love in the world.

We were a family.

These were the words that were going through my head as I lay awake in the hospital bed, staring at my newborn daughter laying across from me in her bassinet with Harm laying in the hospital chair with one hand on the cart that held her and the other resting next to me on the bed. Even in his sleep he protected us.

I love him. I don't think that there is any possible way to get around the fact that I know this is the man that I'm going to spend the rest of my life being madly in love with.

So naturally, when he wakes up and catches me switching back and forth between staring at him and our daughter, I say the first thing that comes to my mind.

"Marry me?"

He smiles, leaning up in the chair to see me better.

"Do you really love me?" he asks in a teasing way because he would have to be blind to not believe me.

"I was disobeying Chegwidden's order since the first ride to JAG."

"His order?"

"Don't get too close, you'll be working together."

"We should be court martialed."

"Maybe we could convince them to let us share a cell in the brig?"

"What about the baby?" He asks, gesturing toward the bassinet.

"Chegwidden's retired… I think we're safe."

With that, he leans in to kiss me and I know my final answer to the one night we spent together months ago.

Definitely, definitely worth it.


End file.
